At least two of the sites listed on Prop or Not’s list, Natural News and Naked Capitalism have asked the Washington Post to apologize and retract the story with implied or explicit threats of legal action if such actions were not forthcoming.

The Washington Post yesterday added exculpatory language in the form of an “editor’s note” to the introduction of their Russian Propaganda/Fake News story. To paraphrase – Prop or Not insists on anonymity, the Washington Post didn’t itself did not name any of the sites, it was Prop or Not’s list – not ours, the Washington Post did not vouch for Prop or Not’s findings nor did their article purport to do so. The Washington Post added that Prop or Not took some sites off their list.

In essence, the Washington Post admitted they just passed along the findings of Prop or Not without any independent verification (because Prop or not INSISTS on anonymity?) No apology or retraction was included in the Washington Post editor’s note.

The best anecdote to fake news is real news produced with the highest journalist standards that include fact checking and independent investigation. The Washington Post’s “Russian propaganda effort helped spread ‘fake news’ during election, experts say” fails by those standards.

Fake news doesn’t “need to be stopped”. Fake news is protected by the first amendment. The government is not supposed to act to shut down factually incorrect or misleading news. Fake news needs to be countered by real news. Ultimately, however, it is up to the consumer to decide which content they chose to read.

If Russian or foreign powers are spreading misinformation, it is up to US security agencies to make such identifications, not Prop or Not via the Washington Post.

Natural News one of the sites mentioned in the Fake News article Natural News has demanded an apology and retraction, with the threat of a class action law suit if none is forthcoming.

Naked Capitalism has also requested an apology and retraction without an explicit threat of a lawsuit. Naked Capitalism request, however came from attorney Jim Moody, who has argued cases before the Supreme Court. Mr. Moody’s letter requests a response in three days.